LocallyGrown.Net -- Small Farms Making a Difference

This page contains news items, links to interesting sites, and anything else the market managers have wanted to share with you. They are listed in reverse chronological order, with the newest entries at the top.

The Weblog

This weblog contains LocallyGrown.net news and the weblog entries from all the markets currently using the system.

To visit the authoring market’s website, click on the market name located in the entry’s title.

Pick up is Monday afternoon till 6pm. You’ll want a to bring a cooler.

Does the word ‘Organic’ on something, mean that everything in the product is actually organically grown? – NO !

“In the US for example, products with only 95% organic ingredients can use the word “organic”, and can display the official USDA organic seal. However a third category exists that contains only a minimum of 70% organic ingredients. Food can be labelled “made with organic ingredients”, which can mislead many consumers. There are also a wide range of elements and regulations that apply to the definition of ‘Organic’ throughout the world."

Greetings All!
How in the world did it get to be Thanksgiving already? It certainly has snuck up on me! I am glad I remembered to order my fresh Turkey from Mother Earth Meats! Delivery is tomorrow, Saturday, November 17! The time frame has yet to be determined, but I look for him sometime in the mid-afternoon. For those of you who did order – know that as soon as I have final totals for your orders and arrival time I will be sending an email – expect communication this evening!

This past week, we added a new vendor, Miss Kathleen at Kate’s Pastries. She brought some samples last week and boy were they YUMMY! Kathleen bakes Gluten Free! Wow, her Chocolate Chip cookies blew me away! Chocolate Chip cookies are my absolute favorite cookie and one of the things that I miss most in my Gluten Free Diet. The several attempts which I made with cookies – Dudley wouldn’t eat – and he eats ANYTHING! (Dudley is my 6 year old Black Lab mix) Miss Kathleen’s Chocolate Chip cookies are now my FAVORITE thing! I was also lucky enough to try her Banana Nut Muffins as well as her Sweet Potato Muffins and her Pumpkin Muffins! If she had not told me they were gluten free, I would not have known! Pick up some Pumpkin Muffins to serve with coffee or tea on Thanksgiving morning – or the day after!

The garden at Rancho Alegre Farm is sprouting all kinds of things! Take a walk back and see what RaShauld has created! He has assured me that we will start enjoying the harvest in about 3 weeks time! He is also working with Pilar to make Compost and Worms available for our gardeners!

Whether you spend Thanksgiving with friends or family or take the day just for reflection, I wish you all a very Happy Thanksgiving. Gratitude is an attitude – one that changes us for the better the more we practice it! I thank you all for your ongoing support of me and of the Market. Please know that you are in my everyday prayers of gratitude as you will be on Thanksgiving. God Bless.

SOUPERKIDSCAFE: A TRUETHANKSGIVINGFEAST
It comes as no surprise that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday celebration. This year it was made extra special by the pre-Thanksgiving feast of veggie soups we cooked-up with the children of the Lake Olmstead housing community. There are some awesome adults to thank for the success of that event, but my hugs today go out to all those kids who truly put their hearts into that meal.

LOCALCHRISTMASTREES:
Starting next week, Augusta Locally Grown will offer locally-grown Christmas trees from Clarks Hill Christmas Tree Farm. Delivery to your home is available! Or, if you’d rather visit their farm to pick-and-cut your own, visit their website at clarkshillchristmastreefarm.com.

NUTCRACKINGFUNDRAISER:
Our student interns have agreed to a long evening of pecan cracking & shelling to raise money for the Veggie Truck Initiative. If our first 20 pounds go well, this could turn into a regular fundraiser and service to our customers during pecan season. Thanks to Chris T for inspiring the idea.

WELCOMEBACKFLATLANDFARM:
Flat Land Farm is back with eggs! They’ve been growing their flock of grass-pastured hens to meet the needs of the SCAD Farm to Table student meal program. Now, with SCAD on break, they’re back with Augusta Locally Grown.

A-GUSTAVOREWINNERTHISWEEK: MACK
A bag of fresh greenbeans has become the most requested game-day snack for this baseball player and his teammates. His mom, Gretchen, a local Type 1 Diabetes educator and fundraiser, probably had a little something to do with this, but we’re awarding the limited-edition tshirt to her son!

To learn more about A-GUSTAVORE: THEGAME, visit our website at augustalocallygrown.org.

This is a pickup reminder for those of you who ordered this week. Thank you for your order. You can pick up your order from 4:00 p.m. until 6:00 p.m. today at Saint Peter’s Episcopal Church at 925 Mitchell Street in Conway.

Thanksgiving is a time to give thanks, a time for family and friends. I would like you give you “Thanks” for supporting our businesses. Also, thank you for buying local. It has been an adventure during the last 3 years. Floods, Wind, Snow, Hail, Heat and Drought, we have seen it all. Yet one thing still continues, our goal to provide locally grown produce and products to you. It hasn’t been easy, but it has been rewarding.

As you look at your plans for Thanksgiving, please strongly consider what we have to offer for part or all of your meal.

You will notice many new products available. From Smoked Ham Roasts to Red Bok Choy. To Cheeses and Pies, to Pumpkins and Buffalo. Don’t forget about Jams and Jellies.

We have 118 products available to you. That includes 38 vegetable choices.

Delivery this week will happen as normal, Tuesday evening in Clay Center and Wednesday Evening in Manhattan. The following week we will move the delivery back to Saturday December 1st, the 2nd winter market in Manhattan. The reason for this is to allow myself enough time to harvest for that market during the daylight hours.

To help you plan for next week, we want to let you know that we will have a market on Wednesday before Thanksgiving so you can get your naturally grown holiday meal ingredients fresh from your local farmers! We have so many great items to make your meals special. Surprise everyone with a large chicken instead of a turkey, and a green salad with fresh tomatoes and cucumbers (grown in hoop houses locally!), microgreens, gourmet olives, and radishes. For lovely side dishes, consider beets, turnips, greens, and brussels sprouts. We have fresh sage to flavor your chicken, turkey, dressing, and many other dishes. We know you will need chicken or duck eggs for baking, sausage to go in your dressing, and pork neckbones, fatback, or bacon to cook with your greens. For dessert, you must try our new pumpkin pie tartes and hazelnut macaroons! Honey makes a wonderful gift for your dinner hosts, friends, and family, and we have it in all shapes and sizes—samplers, honey bears, half pints, pints, quarts and half gallons. We also have handmade soap, sugar scrub, lip balm, skin toner, and for sale at the market only—greeting cards, notepads, gift card holders, gift tags, and holiday planners.

We will send this announcement out again Saturday night as a reminder when we open the online market, and then you can preorder as usual until Monday at midnight and pick up in the Breezeway at Nightbird Books on Wednesday from 4-7 pm. A few of our farmers will also be at the market and have things available for sale from the table: